this post was submitted on 01 Jul 2025
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The coolest thing about that experiment is that just selecting for tame and docile foxes also caused them to develop floppy ears and curled tails.
What I have to wonder about that, is if those genes are actually connected to behavior, or if humans just perceive animals with floppy ears and curly tails as friendlier and accidentally select for that as well
From the show I saw, the early choice was between foxes that would immediately try to kill you versus foxes that would be willing to let you live. The floppy ears and curly tails happened very gradually in the process.
The "not selected" foxes were snarling and snapping and generally being nasty as hell.
There were other serious problems standing in the way of making them pets. Probably the worst is that they pee everywhere, and the pee is extremely foul smelling, so you can't keep them in the house, no matter how friendly they might be.
They also don't make cute or useful sound like a bark, or a purr, they make a really loud, very annoying wail, that gets on the nerves of even the most ardent fox lover.
Even after all these years of breeding, these serious issues remain, keeping them from becoming viable pets for the foreseeable future.